Enjoying the World Cup

2006-06-05T20:10:00.000-07:00

I have always enjoyed the World Cup since I saw my first one in 1982. Prior to that it was a pay for view event, poorly publicized and restricted to a limited number of locations. I saw most of the games then on Univision where the on the air feed was so unreliable that half of the games ended up as black and white telecasts due to the lack of signal strength. Years later, all of the games of the World Cup will be telecast in high definition on ESPN and ABC. Yet for many Americans instead of looking forward in anticpation for the world's greatest spectacle, they will spend long hours sitting aimlessly waiting for preseason football. After years of indoctrination of being told that soccer is a game that Americans just don't get, its too slow, there's not enough scoring and of course "it's not American", the tide is beginning to turn. This summer, sees corporate America going global and ignoring conventional wisdom to follow the money trail. Budweiser, McDonald's, Master Card, Adidas, Yahoo and Coca-Cola headline the list of FIFA's marketing partners.

This year I'll spend most of the first round and much of the round of 16 in Germany where I can not only go to three matches but soak up the atmosphere I've only been able to see on TV. Now for those who couldn't get tickets and have decided to watch a couple of games here are a couple of suggestions. One, don't sit at home alone and randomly watch just anyone. If you had a friend who had never seen a NFL game you wouldn't tell them to watch the Arizona Cardinals at Detroit Lions.

Here are my picks for quality first round viewing.

Sat. June 10 England - Paraguay 9AM ABC
Yeah I know that drinking and grilling at 9AM are unheard of but this is the World Cup! Go to an English pub first thing in the morning for breakfast and pints of beer and a bar full of England supporters and you'll be hooked. Chicks dig the long ball and England specializes in accurate, long passes, hard tackles and a fan base that borders on the lunatic fringe.

Sat. June 10 Argentina - Ivory Coast (Cote d'Ivoire) 3PM ESPN2
Argentina is one of the world's best and the most hated team in the world. They play with skill but their tendency to take dives, cheap shot opponents and talk mucho trash make it so enjoyable when they lose. Ivory Coast is the best African team with excellent ball skill, toughness and willpower. Didier Drogba who plays for Chelsea in England leads the Ivory Coast attack. African teams have given Argentina fits and this could be the upset of the first round.

Mon. June 12 USA - Czech Republic 12 noon ESPN2
Start sniffling on Friday. Loudly proclaim you can't understand what all those foreigners are up to and then first thing Monday AM call in sick. Hell it should be a national holiday just like it is in the rest of the civilized world. The USA will be heavy underdogs to the second best team in the world but an upset win or tie here could start them on the road to history.

Tues. June 13 Brazil - Croatia 3PM ESPN2
Brazil always puts on a show but if they stumble its usually in the beginning of the Cup. Croatia is a solid European club who could pull of an upset.

Sat. June 17 USA - Italy 3PM ABC
A win by the USA against the highly respected Italian team would "shock the world".
Wear red and fly the flag. Bush can threaten to invade other coutries but nothing will scare the world more than a serious beatdown on the Italians.

Thurs. June 22 USA - Ghana 10AM ESPN
Ghana has a squad full of players performing at the top levels of European soccer. This could be the game that puts the USA in the second round. They may have to run the score to beat out either Czech Republic or Italy for a spot in the second round.
If the USA doesn't pull off the upsets in the first two games, this one will be for pride.

Rob's World Cup Summer Vacation

Enjoying the World Cup